Kage no Kioku
by Sakura Lawliet
Summary: The life of one Miyu Yua is truly not as exciting as one would expect. With a hard earned teaching career on the rise and the continuous learning position as a single mother to a beautiful son - the only stimulus she finds herself with is battling between her own inner complexities and the perplexing stoicism of an eccentric student.
1. Introduction

**Title:** Kage no Kioku **  
** **Fandom:** Death Note **  
** **Rated:** Teen and up (as of now) **  
** **Author:** Sakura Lawliet **  
** **Editor:** _-_

 **Disclaimer:** _I do not own Death Note or any of it's canon characters. I only own Miyu, Kouki, all Miyu's students (except for L, Light, and Kiyomi obviously) and the plot._

 **Warning(s):** _Nightmares?_

Re-written version of story called " _Kage O Shōhi_ ".

Nothing of the actual plot is going, but some minor details and un-factual things will be removed.

This is a new story, the old version can still be found in my stories if you're curious about it, haha. It's terrible though. I started that story two years ago, and hadn't updated it about a year which is why I've decided to rewrite it.

Thank you for being here and taking time to read any of the weird/maybe-terrible writing I'll be spewing.

I hope you enjoy! :3

* * *

 _ **CHAPTER 01/PROLOGUE:**_

 **Introduction**

 _"Miyu..." They whispered. "Miyu... Come to us..." They encouraged. "Come to us..." She just stood there rooted to her spot as a complete look of horror was frozen on her face. They reached for her. Closer and closer they got._

 _"Miyu..." They whispered once more. "We need you..." They crawled towards her and she finally took notice to how close they were getting, trying in might to move, to run away, but her body refused to obey her. She felt her heart skip a few beats that it shouldn't have and her breathing hitch so sharply that it came to the point where her lungs almost seemed to forget that she did in fact need oxygen to live. She couldn't move. She couldn't think straight. She tried to close her eyes, but her body just would not listen to her demands._

 _She watched them, the shadows of her mind, try to crawl their way to her. She so badly wanted to just drop dead right at this moment, but even that was denied to her. Closer and closer, they were almost there. They reached out their shadowy hands, they could almost touch her. Almost, but then suddenly they were screeching and wailing as they scurried back, very quickly disappearing back into the darkness. She breathed in deeply and her heart seemed to start up again._

 _Her eyes widened once more in horror as she felt arms encircle her from behind. She felt a body press up against her and hot air breathed down her neck. "To close..." He whispered into her ear, sending chills down her spine in cold horror. The familiar voice, the familiar touch burning her thoughts, burning her skin. Her body tensed with memories and silent fear. He pressed his mouth to her neck and she felt him smirk against her skin. "You're mine... Remember that and I won't let them get you..."_

 _The devil himself had once again shown himself. He squeezed her tighter to him and she felt like throwing up. She despised this boy, this man... No, this monster._

* * *

 **April 5, 2004**

A young woman shot up in her bed, sweat dripping down her face and her long, brown slightly curled hair was matted and tangled upon her head. Her emerald eyes shown in panic as she searched the room for anything out of the ordinary. She sighed and slumped back into her bed when she was sure that everything was in it's place and there nothing, or _no one_ , in her room. She stared at the ceiling in deep thought. "I haven't had that dream in years..." She muttered to herself. "Why now?" She asked her white ceiling above her like it had the answer. She sucked in a deep breath looking to the nightstand to her right for those bright red letters that would tell her the time. A loud groan escaped her lips when she realized how early it was and she wasn't gonna go back to sleep after that nightmare she just had. She was wide awake now and slowly slipped out of her bed to take a longer-than-usual shower. Before she got into the warm and inviting shower she slowly and quietly walked to her son's bedroom door and very carefully cracked it open to check on her precious angel. His tiny face held a peaceful and calm expression as his short, semi-long, somehow inherited, platinum blond hair was ruffled and swept gently across his forehead. She smiled softly before closing the door just as carefully as she opened it and left to go take her shower.

Some time later, after she got out of her longer-than-usual shower and woke her son up and got him dressed, she was strapping him into his car seat as she was leaving to go to work. The short drive to work was silent as her son fell back asleep again like he probably will for the rest of her working days. Her job, that she hopes she will enjoy, consisted of her teaching at a very well known college all around Japan known as Tou-Oh University. She pulled into the large parking that accompanied the large establishment that she worked for. Getting out of the drivers seat she moved to the back door and opened it. "Kouki honey... It's time to get up now, we're here." She said softly, gently pushing his hair out of his eyes. The boy shifted with a small whine, before slowly opening his brilliant green eyes to stare his mother in her own set of emerald orbs.

"Five more minutes please?" He asked sleepily rubbing his eyes with his tiny hands. His mother smiled at him as she started to unbuckle him.

"How about, instead, we go in and you can nap all you want in my new classroom?" She asked him, picking him up out of his car seat to set him on his feet upon the paved parking lot. His hand slipped into hers as she closed the door and picked up her bag, throwing the strap over her shoulder.

"Okay," he complied, walking with her into the building.

The one thing she likes about this job, and this college, is that they allowed her to bring her child into work with her. They understand her situation and the school board are the only ones out of few that know why she has a 6 year old child at the age of twenty-two. They were the ones to offer the job after she graduated from this very school. Being smarter than most her age, graduating at the early age of twenty-two because she started school a little earlier than most, they thought they could help her out and gave her the job she has now. It is now April 5th the start of her new job as a Psychology teacher in Tou-Oh University. She made her way to the classroom she would be using for the rest of her teaching career here. She took her key out and opened the door, hearing her child gasp in awe. Even she was a little surprised by the large size of her room and grinned when she noticed the large ceiling to one-third from the floor windows that covered the whole right side of the classroom. The room was already bright from the natural sunlight, so she didn't bother with the light switches and walked to her large desk at the front of the room. She set her bag down at the right of her chair on the floor and sat down at her desk, pulling her child up onto her lap.

"Mommy?" Kouki spoke, "When are the other people gonna be here?" He asked looking towards the windows. Miyu smiled.

"Not for a little while. Want to draw?" She offered.

"Yeah!" He exclaimed and Miyu bent over to pick up her bag. She pulled out some paper and crayons before standing up and putting Kouki in her seat. She walked to the black board that was behind her desk and picked up the white chalk gently. She rolled it in her hands for some time and then put it back down on the metal rail chalk holder. She went over to the door and opened it, sticking the wooden stopper in it to keep the door from closing. She grinned moving to wipe the thin layer of dust off each of the desks while waiting for the time to pass by. Soon, after twenty boring minutes had passed she heard the halls start to fill with students. Laughter, talking, screaming, and the fast paced, even running, footsteps down tiled floors was heard and she could practically feel her son's excitement rising with each passing second. Soon enough her class was filled, as she has two classes in the morning and three in the afternoon, this being her first of the day and turned to the blackboard behind her and wrote in perfect print, with the white chalk, her name.

 **Miyu Yua**

She turned back to the class, after replacing the chalk in its original spot, with a big smile. "My name is Miyu Yua." Seeing curious looks being spent to something behind her she turned to her desk. In her chair, her son was bouncing up and down excitedly with a huge grin on his face. She laughed, "Oh yes, and this is my son, Kouki. He is, as you might notice, very excited as he has been waiting for you all to show up for some time now."

"Hello," he greeted and Miyu smiled. She looked to her class and noticed some smiles and some rolled eyes. She sighed inwardly, turning her carefree expression into a serious one and cleared her throat to gain her classes attention once more.

"This is my Psychology class. There will be no degrading each other, no bulling, and there will be no destruction to anything in this classroom. And everything that is said in this room will stay in this room. If I find that anything is spread around the school from any of our discussions in this room, there will be grave consequences, do you hear?" She heard a few, 'yes ma'am's and saw some heads nod. "Good, now," Miyu picked up a clipboard from the end of her desk. "I'll be doing the attendance and when I call your name, stand and tell me your favorite thing to do." Miyu smiled widely at them, noticing a few confused glances and annoyed expressions, ignoring them as she started from the bottom of her list. "Yori, Makoto?" A girl, with straight, brown hair to her shoulders, near the back middle of the classroom stood from her seat.

"That's me." She smiled, "My favorite thing to do is draw." She bowed in courtesy before taking her seat. Miyu smiled at her.

"Thank you Yori-chan. Yoshirou, Hibiki?" A boy near the back left of the class stood up, his dirty, blond hair shaved to his head.

"That is me." He said, looking at the clock, "My favorite thing to do is play video games." He admitted, bowing himself and also took his seat after he was done.

"Thank you, Yoshirou-kun," she looked down at her list of students. "Yagami, Light?" Another boy, she noticed all the girls look over to him at the sound of his name, stood from his spot near the windows.

He smiled, and she noticed how fake it was, "That would be me," he said smoothly. "My favorite thing to do is study, learn new things." Miyu raised an eyebrow, she never heard that from a kids mouth before.

She observed him sharply. Neat, and perfect short brown hair, brown eyes, and clean, simple dressing, no wrinkles... He looks and holds himself as if he holds personal importance, interesting... She nodded slowly at him.

"Very interesting, Yagami-kun," she voiced her thoughts, "I don't think I've ever heard a kid so much as utter that before," she laughed, Light joining her with his own chuckles of agreement. "Thank you for sharing that," she smiled at him as he sat down. "Wakana, Chiyo?" A girl with glasses stood from one of the seats in the front.

"Me!" She exclaimed, "I really enjoy to cook and bake!" She grinned widely making Miyu grin with her.

"Oh?" Miyu asked, "That's wonderful! It looks like I have someone to go to for help in my cooking skills then!" She laughed with Miyu before she sat back down with a response to Miyu for her to come around anytime for help, "Thank you, Wakana-chan. Tsubaki, Kiyoko?" A girl stood from one of the middle seats, her hair cut short to end at her chin.

"Hello," she started, "My favorite thing to do is origami and kirigami." She said sitting back down.

"Thank you, Tsubaki-chan, I heard it was fun, but when I first tried I sucked at it," she chuckled, glancing down at the attendance board, but didn't really have to, she remembered all the names already. "Takeshi, Arata?" A boy with an average short haircut for young males his age stood from the back seats.

"I'm here." He said, "And I like to talk and hang out with people, mostly my friends." He shrugged his shoulders uncaring. Miyu smiled at him as he took his seat.

"A social butterfly, huh?" She asked with a smirk, "That's nice to know, thank you, Takeshi-kun. Takada, Kiyomi?" A girl that was sitting next to Light stood with a hair cut usually seen on the boys, but it went well her pretty features.

"That's me," sShe said, "I like to research things and find out certain things that interest me."

Miyu nodded her head.

"Thank you, Takada-chan." Miyu noticed the way Kiyomi rolled her eyes when she added the '-chan' suffix to her name, but Miyu ignored it, moving on without incident. "Shizuka, Yuuki?" A girl stood, her black shoulder length hair pulled back into a high ponytail.

"Hey! That's me," She started, "My favorite thing to do is run. I'm on the track team." She added. Miyu smiled.

"That's great, there is no way I could run for track," she laughed, "I could barely run in Physical Ed." She said with a knowing smile, remembering her high school and college days, that really weren't so long ago. "Thank you, Shizuka-chan. Shin, Len?" Blond hair, much like her son's, greeted her sight as she met brilliant blue eyes, that were far different from her son's green one's.

"Hello," he smiled brightly, "I'm Len, and my favorite thing to do is listen to music." Miyu knew she was going to like this one, not only because he held some resemblance to her son, but because of some points that she noticed about him.

Miyu smiled back just as brightly, "Thank you Shin-kun, I would love to hear your taste in music, and I'll be glad to share mine if you want." She offered before moving on, "Sakura, Akito?" A tin and fragile looking boy stood, his black hair touching his shoulders as his grey eyes bore into Miyu's emerald orbs.

"I like to read." He said plainly and Miyu grinned.

"Thank you Sakura-kun. Ryoichi, Kaito?" A boy with dark shaggy brown hair stood, his height taller than everyone, Miyu noticed and smiled at the thought.

"Yo," he waved with the short greeting. "My favorite thing to do is practice. And sports." He added.

Miyu smiled, "I see, thank you, Ryoichi-kun, I'll keep that in mind. Noriko, Isumi?" A girl with long black hair that reached below her behind stood from the front window seat. Her bright, beautiful eyes popped out on her facial features, courtesy of her dark hair color.

"I'm Isumi." She said softly, "And I have a thing for writing." Miyu grinned.

"Hey! Me, too!" Miyu responded. "Maybe we could compare sometime?" She asked before moving on. "Junko, Satomi?" A girl with curly brown hair stood from the middle left seats.

"That is me!" She grinned. "I love to go for walks on nice days." She said.

Miyu nodded, "I like to do that, too sometimes." She admitted, "It helps clear my mind. Thank you, Junko-chan. Isamu, Daiki?" A boy with light brown hair stood, his eyes half lidded.

"Here." He said lazily. "My favorite thing to do is sleep." As if to prove his statement a big yawn came from his mouth.

Miyu laughed, "Thank you, Isamu-kun, I can tell. Hideki, Ryuga?" She asked.

She turned to her last student with a small smile. She heard a chair scratch against the tiled floor and looked to her left. In the front seat a young man stood, his black inky hair was unruly and spiky upon his head. His clothes were baggy, consisting of a long sleeved white shirt and faded jeans. He wore worn out sneakers without any socks. Her eyes widened a bit when she met black irises that seems to drag her deeper and deeper into a dark and endless pit. She quickly reminded herself she was staring.

She blinked and mentally shook her thoughts, "Ah, you must be Hideki-kun, yes?" She smiled fondly at him.

"Yes, my name is Hideki, Ryuga. I'm afraid to say that I do not have anything that I like to do or consider 'my favorite' thing to do." His voice was deep and held no emotion or feeling in it and she stared at him, her eyes softening.

"I see, well, no worries than!" She grinned, "Sit down and meet me after class will you, Hideki-kun?" He stared at her for some time before giving her a short nod and sitting... uniquely... in his seat. She grinned.

"Thank you, Hideki-kun." She turned to the class. "You may know that I had you introduce yourself like many younger grades would do and not really a college course. Although, with this I hope you understand that this is how this class will be run; differently. This is psychology, and we will be getting to know each other in ways we may not expect, and please, do not be afraid. I say this only so you aren't surprised by the weird and personal questions asked in this class.

"Everyday, when you come in, look to the chalk board and the question of the day will be there for you to think about before we discuss with the whole class. I want everyone to feel connected to each other by the end of this year. So, with that said, if you ever have anything to say, ask or want to discuss about, do not be afraid to come out with it. Also, that means there will be no private talks with me, if you wish to talk with me, you can talk to the whole class. I know it sounds cruel, but this will just be another step to bonding with everyone. The only private talks that will happen will be when I instigate them myself, which will probably be very rare. And remember," she added, "Everything that is said in this room will _never_ leave this room." That was when the bell rang, signalling the end of class. All the students just sat there staring at their teacher in disbelief, wondering if they were hearing things or if this was really the end of class. They soon all got up and scurried off to get to their next class. After checking on her son, who fell fast asleep in her chair, her eyes landed on her most interesting student. Her most eccentric student.

"Hideki-kun," she started with a smile and he looked into her emerald eyes with his own obsidian one's.

* * *

 **If anyone (from the last story) remembers, this chapter use to deal with middle names. I've changed that, as the Japanese don't have middle names (younger me was slightly disappointed by this fact, but oh well). Instead, I'll be introducing nicknames. I really didn't change much, just some small details and errors.**

 **This chapter is still brazingly boring, haha, sorry; I've always hated prologue chapters anyway.**

 **Next update is taking a bit longer. :) I've rewritten about half of it, but my last year of high school is starting up and already kicking my arse.**

 **Thank you for reading,  
** **~Sakura**


	2. Name

**Title:** Kage no Kioku **  
** **Fandom:** Death Note **  
** **Rated:** Teen and up (as of now) **  
** **Author:** Sakura Lawliet **  
** **Editor: -**

 **Disclaimer:** _I do not own Death Note or any of it's canon characters. I only own Miyu, Kouki, all Miyu's students (except for L, Light, and Kiyomi obviously) and the plot._

 **Warning(s):** _None._

This chapter use to be a talk in the classroom about Kira. Instead, I've changed it to introduce their nicknames, or well, "new names." Hope you enjoy.

* * *

 _ **CHAPTER 02:**_

 **Name**

 **April 5, 2004**

 _"Hideki-kun," she started with a smile and he looked into her emerald eyes with his own obsidian one's._

"Yes, Yua-sensei?" He asked, tilting his head a bit as he stared at her with his wide inky pools. She blinked at him, before laughing.

"Please, when we are alone, just call me Miyu. It makes me feel old when you call me by my last name." She smiled, walking over to him and slipped into the desk next to him.

"I believe that would be mildly inappropriate," he replied evenly. Miyu rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah." She shook her head lightly, her eyes observing him keenly. "Some would say that. Very interesting... What's your IQ?" She randomly asked, leaning her elbow on the desk while resting her head in her palm with a smile. Miyu has always been one to get into everyone's personal business, even when she could practicly see everything in the way they hold themsleves or by the guarded look in their eyes.

"I do not see how my IQ is important." Miyu sighed.

"Okay, okay, probably too forward." She said with a smirk, "I just wanted to get to know you, seeing as you are the most interesting person I've come across so far." He was silent for a few moments, studying his teacher.

"I... interest you? How so?" He asked and Miyu grinned.

"You're a mystery to me." She said plainly.

"So are all your other students." He informed her. "You know nothing about them either, how do I stand out to you more than the others? It can't be anything more than my physical manner, can it?" He wondered.

"Although, your physical impression is also interesting, it is not as interesting as your blatant intelligence and quite intriguing emotionless facade." She answered.

"Emotionless facade?"

"Yes, unless this is how you always are; I admit I have contemplated many theories as to how you've come to be the person you are today already. " She confessed, a sheepish smile marring her, maybe a little too cheery, face.

"Why is that?" He asked her.

Miyu tilted her head to the side slightly, eyes just as observing and sharp as Hideki-kun's, although more soft in their cut compared to his dark irises, "Experience has turned me into a person who can look for the smallest things to help me understand the people I spend my everyday life with. There is always a reason for one's actions; a reason for one's thoughts and one's self-appreciation." She said, "At least, that is what I believe, of course." She added, with a shrug of her shoulders and a small smile. "I become interested when one has guarded eyes and strange... tendencies," her eyes trailed to his unique style of seating and they shimmered slightly underneath the shifting of reflected light off their glassy surfaces'.

"Explain," he somewhat demanded her and she gave him a look.

"What exactly do you wish for me to explain?" His calculating gaze bore into her amused emerald one.

"Everything," he abruptly answered.

"Hmm," She hummed, smile tugging her lips to a wider line, one that seemed to make a gentle ache in her cheeks duly start to make itself known. "I can arrange that," she started, continuing even as his dark stare made as if to make a hole into her skin. "Look at Sakura-kun. You did notice his very short and clipped response, yes?" She asked him, "I'm sure you did if I'm right about you. Anyways, his voice might have seemed strong, but you could hear the faint hint of shakiness on the first syllable of his first word as he started to talk, before he turned his tone quite steely and cold. Shakiness in speech was obviously from a deep breath, one just as shaky, before he answered. Meaning, he was nervous, anxious, worried about what to say, how to say it, and how to hold himself. His eyes may have bored into me just as much as yours are now, but his were a flicker between emotion and holding everything tightly to himself. He did do a pretty swell job, meaning he's one to hide away from human interaction, he's been doing it for a long while too. He's a reader, probably a silent one who keeps to himself, hates his life and uses stories to erase away reality for some imagination or fantasy. Although, that depends on what he reads of course. He could be into history or even human nature, who knows until we get into it? How am I doing so far?"

He blinked, lips tugging just a bit downwards, "I'm not one to guess facts or use human responses to shape a picture as humans are natural liers."

Miyu scoffed, maybe a touch offended, "Guessing? Who says I'm guessing?"

"I don't see how any of this is true without proof and not just a single man-made analysis made from something as simple as just the words of a young male."

Miyu smiled softly, "I'm a psychology teacher, I've obviously mastered some sort of psychology reading if I've made it this far."

"Proof." His voice bit out, his eyes cutting just a bit harsher into her person and she smiled.

"Now now, let me finish at least, won't you? You can't just cut out the rest because you don't agree with it. One day you'll see where I'm coming from, or even that I'm right. Sometimes, being able to read someone's body language is just as powerful as catching someone in the act. You can tell a liar just by the twitch of their finger or the glimmer in their eyes. You can tell someone's innocence just by the way they speak and you can tell someone's whole story just by the way they hold themselves and the look in their eyes. Hideki-kun, sometimes being distant from people can hinder your understanding of them, sometimes you can miss everything even if you've noticed everything." She watched the tilt of his head and his comprehending blink in response to her words and knew he was confused by her contradicting sentence.

For an intelligent one, he sure did miss the most commonest of things, blind to the things that someone such as herself would notice, but also noticing in the things she would never see, she understood as much. She stayed silent for his waited answer as she took in his blank expression, blank body language and somewhat flickering dark irises. "Very well, you may continue." He murmured, face slightly pouted in an almost childish way, but she ignored it with a smile of her own.

"Sakura-kun is very straight in his posture," she quickly jumped in, "Tense in his stance. Nervousness again shows; anxious, worried of his appearance. He's probably been reprimanded many a time on his manner, I'm sure that now he is just so use to keeping himself in a stiff hold that he does it naturally even if he's no longer in the presence of the people whose been scolding him so. Probably forced to grow up fast, and because of this had figured out at a young age certain things that make you different then the rest. Maybe he was bullied at a young age, but then became distant, forcing himself to become instead the invisible party than the one bullied. As a result, he's gained an anxiousness, maybe a social anxiety that keeps him from conversing with others freely without being tight lipped or defensive. He may not have any friends, having distanced himself so well, but that's easy to overcome. Rumpled clothes, and slightly tousled hair, meaning that no one at home has helped check his appearance. Either they are absent or... not there at all. Maybe he lives with relatives that are either too old to see, or too old to get up early in the morning. Maybe he just has quirks. Just a notebook and a library book while everyone else has a binder and one or two notebooks, maybe he's just one to keep his load light, or has no money to make an abundance of supplies possible..." Miyu paused, her memories and thoughts coming to a rift as she wondered what else there was.

She had to write everything down as soon as possible to not forget. She didn't just have Akito Sakura to worry about, she had everyone else to think of too. Everyone and their quirks, body language and obvious tellings swirled in Miyu's head, and she smiled widely at Hideki-kun in silence, waiting for his obvious response to make itself known soon.

"I still do not see the point in making all these observations if one does not have actual knowledge of truth or factual evidence of that truth."

Miyu blinked, "You must always be open to possibilities."

"Facts are what make possibilities."

"You observe people as well, yes? I'm sure you noticed just about everything I mentioned, you're a very intelligent person, capable of seeing things deeper than what's seen with the casual glimpse of the eyes."

Hideki-kun was silent, eyes still, but obviously taking in everything that Miyu was up to offering. Miyu raised an eyebrow.

"Listen, I just want you to think of everything that we talked about here," she smiled, glancing over to her sleeping son who passed out over her desk. His blond hair haloed his head, covering half his face as it spilled over the wooden surface. The scene made her heart swell in love before she focused back on her student. "My next class will be starting soon, why don't you go ahead to your next class?" Hideki-kun blinked, but unfolded himself to step off his chair. "It was wonderful to have this conversation with you, Hidek-"

"Ryuga," he cut in, his blank eyes unwavering. Miyu smiled widely as he continued, "Call me, Ryuga."

"Of course," Miyu complied, "Willing to meet me tomorrow after class again? This talk was very interesting."

Ryuga said nothing, but he gave a small head bow in farewell, "Good day, Miyu."

Miyu smiled, "You too, Ryuga."

She watched him leave before turning to her notebook, having to pry it from underneath her sleeping kid. She turned a few pages until she came to one labelled 'Hideki, Ryuga'.

Under his name she jotted, ' **Different, intelligent, more than he seems, and interested in Yagami, Light**.'

* * *

 **April 6, 2004**

Miyu had just finished writing her question of the day when the bell rang, signalling the start of class. She turned to her class who had all just got done sitting down and smiled brightly. "Good morning, class! As you see, today we have some questions for discussion," she motioned to the board which sprawled in neat, large letters was ' _What do names mean to you? How would you introduce yourself if you could choose a different name for yourself?_ ' and below that ' _What do you think of Kira's behavior, their means/execution, and why do you think they do it? Do you agree with Kira and if you were in their position would you do the same?_ '.

The class was silent with an uncomfortable feeling about today's discussion list. Kira was not something they could lightly talk about in the classroom, right? The audible thoughts made the classroom seem empty, and Miyu smiled. Kouki held tightly to a box that Miyu and he had put together just last night for all their classes.

"Alright, so who wants to start?"

No one really dared to make a move and Miyu felt a spark of pride as she leaned against her desk. Her eyes landed on Ryuga, but his gaze was focused on the board behind her.

"Okay, as your introduction into this class, you'll realize that most of the things in here are going to make you uncomfortable. Either uncomfortable or angry. Get use to it, because this will never change," Miyu smiled, "You must take action, be courageous, but you must also be respectful. Understand that even though something may be said in this class, nothing will be said outside of it. Let's start this conversation; I'll go first, how about that?"

Silence. Miyu sighed, realizing that no one was going to go out of their way to put themselves in the spotlight.

She took a deep breath, "Names don't mean a lot to me, but at the same time they do. Like, Kouki's name roughly means 'hope', 'happiness', 'light', and so on. Kouki was a light in a dark time of mine. A name should not define someone however. I had an older brother whose name roughly meant 'hero'. And to be honest, he _was_ a hero, even though in the end he himself and many others didn't see it. He was my hero. But it this certain case, it's safe to say that everyone should have the _right_ to make a name for themselves in their own way."

Miyu scanned her crowd, noticing most with their eyes to the board behind her with shifty bodies, and worried expressions, and others staring or fidgeting at their desks. And then, of course, there was Ryuga who just stared at her blankly in undivided, or maybe just unfocused, attention.

Miyu frowned at the lost of attention in her students and pushed off her desk to walk around in the front space of her classroom, "I've hated my name for years. Bullied in school a lot about how I was totally different then the illusion my name gave me. I wasn't 'beautiful' like my name conditions you to believe. My classmates weren't as tolerant to it as I was apparently," Miyu smiled bitterly, eyes focusing back on her students who had finally fixed their attention on her. "Either way, names are a half and half game for me..." Her eyes flickered across the crowd before a smirk tugged at her lips. "Kaito, what about you?"

Kaito snapped into a straight sitting position at the sound of his name, eyes blinked to focus on his smirking teacher. Eyes widened, he realizing he was fading in and out during class, sleep pulling him into something tempting. "Ah, well, um... Names are cool...?" He gave a nervous laugh as his teacher turned to Kouki and his makeshift box. She reached her hand out and Kouki eagerly shoved it into her arms with bouncing excitement.

Miyu sighed as she shuffled the little slips of paper in the box, "Well, it seems you really aren't into this discussion. Which in hindsight, is alright. Give me something to go on for the next classes." She smiled. "However, the reason I went into this discussion was for this activity here." She walked over to the desk in the front row from her right hand side, offering the box to Isumi. Isumi gave a polite smile as she gingerly reached into the box to pull out a small slip, "Don't open them until I call your name."

Obediently, Isumi put her slip down on the desk as Miyu went around the classroom to offer their own goes at the box. "In this class, we'll refer to ourselves with different names. To get us use to a different perspective hopefully. Maybe then we can understand one another better if we aren't truly 'ourselves'. It's just something I'm testing out." Miyu explained as she got done giving each student their own slip and walked back to the front of the classroom to hand over Kouki the box. He was tittering with excitement, on the edge of his seat, which made Miyu swell with happiness to know he was at least having fun.

Miyu pulled out her notebook, before calling out names for them to read off their slips. It was amusing to watch either the curiosity or dislike cross each students face at the sight of their new name. Some could barely pronounce them, but Miyu couldn't really fault them.

"Some are obviously English names, but that's because I'm half English myself," Miyu explained, smiling. "We have half of the class left to take on the next topic-" Miyu paused at the sight of Saki's, known before as Chiyo Wakana, hand in the air. Miyu nodded for her to talk.

"I, well, I was just wondering what your name is?" Miyu blinked and Saki continued through, "You share as well, shouldn't you be a part of our class and have a name of your own?"

Miyu smiled, "That's a very good point. What should my name be then?"

Saki paused, but instead, newly named Noble, once Kaito Ryoichi, spoke up, "Shouldn't you name yourself? Like how you talked about in your topic discussion?"

"How fair would that be? For me to chose my own name while I've chosen yours for you to live up to?" Miyu asked.

Noble paused, before shrugging, "True."

"Think about it then! At the end of class we can come to a conclusion," Miyu grinned, before making a quick note in her notebook under both Chiyo's and Kaito's name. "Now, onto something a little more fun, a little more interesting! Well, to me anyway. In this class, we'll be discussing difficult topics like these all the time. This is a current one, so obviously, I'm gonna use this one first." Miyu smirked. "This is the fun of this class. Topic talking and paper writing. We havent gotten to the paper writing yet, but what's next is a fun project. So, why don't we have fun with this first?"

There was a silence as the students peered up at her. Miyu looked to Ryuga who was still staring with blank, wide eyes; like usual. Miyu smiled.

* * *

 **Wow, sorry for taking so long. School has really been hounding me since it started up in September. Between all that and moving, things just haven't been anything less than chaotic. However, this is finally done! It's actually about a hundred words less than my usual 3,000 word minimum, but I don't want to force myself. :) Want to take it slow and seriously. This is something I'm excited about; I've missed this story a lot.**

 **Anyhow, most of the next chapters will be sort of introductory and slow, but hopefully it keeps your interest until things start picking up.**

 **If the "new names" are confusing, let me know.**

 **Thank you for reading,  
** **~Sakura**


	3. Kira

**Title:** Kage no Kioku **  
** **Fandom:** Death Note **  
** **Rated:** Teen and up (as of now) **  
** **Author:** Sakura Lawliet **  
** **Editor: -**

 **Disclaimer:** _I do not own Death Note or any of it's canon characters. I only own Miyu, Kouki, all Miyu's students (except for L, Light, and Kiyomi obviously) and the plot._

 **Warning(s):** _None; unless of course opinionated conversations aren't your thing._

Happy late New Years! It's been really tough, and I've only been able to add pieces here and there to this since the last chapter, sorry it's taken so long! Can't believe it's already 2018. I graduate in just about four months - its a scary thought that college will be just after. I'll try to get the next update out sooner.

Notes;  
 _Noble_ is Kaito Ryoichi's new name for the classroom as introduced last chapter. _Saki_ was also mentioned for Chiyo Wakana. From now on, new nicknames introduced will be noted in the beginning of next updates to help quell any confusion.

However, do not be afraid to ask if you have questions!

* * *

 _ **CHAPTER 03:**_

 **Kira**

 **April 6, 2004**

 _There was a silence as the students peered up at her. Miyu looked to Ryuga who was still staring with blank, wide eyes; like usual. Miyu smiled._

"We all know what we are going to talk about, so what are your thoughts?" She scanning the room, watching the majority of class start to get nervous again. "Kira - a controversial topic. Its fun when things are controversial, there's more to argue and talk about. The more the conversation, the more we learn about each other." A glance around the room made her sigh. Until a tentative hand was raised and she perked, "Ken?"

Hibiki Yoshirou, now named Ken, took a deep breath, "I believe Kira is wrong." Miyu smiled as he continued, "Everyone is human. They may have done some things wrong, made some mistakes, did some morally wrong things, whatever, but who are we to punish another person?"

Morse, before known as Arata Takeshi, was raising his hand immediately and Miyu nodded, "To show an example. We can't just let them get away with it."

"Isn't being caught and put in prison enough example?"

"How does that teach any lesson?"

Ken frowned, "But as a human being, how can we tell another human being they deserve something?"

Morse, paused, "Are you saying that if someone killed someone you cared about, you wouldn't want that person to be punished?"

Ken took a breath, "I'm saying that, what's the point in punishing that person if it's not going to take away the pain they caused - or bring back the person they took away?" Silence. "If we punish them, wouldn't that make us just as bad?"

Miyu blinked, a small smile pulling at her mouth as Morse spoke up, "They killed for no reason. If we punish them, we're doing it for a reason."

"Does that make it right?"

"Yes."

"You can make a reason to do anything. A human life is the same, though. It's still wrong to take a human life, no matter who it is."

"But there's a difference."

"How so?"

"Good and Evil."

There was a sigh before Ken continued, "Good and Evil is an ideology created by humans - it doesn't necessarily mean it exists."

Morse looked more frustrated than anything as the quiet stretched, so Miyu eagerly took the chance to jump in, "This is an interesting notion, of course - something that I myself have thought about over the years, but what makes you come to this conclusion?"

Ken flushed, visible pink covering his cheeks as he cleared his throat and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, "Well, there are no defining features of what is considered Good and what is considered Evil. Human's easily label things as Good or Evil, but everyone has different ideas of what they are. For example; to me, I consider all times of murder, or execution, as Evil - while Morse may have a different opinion. If there is no defining definition for something, then does it actually exist?"

Miyu turned to Morse who frowned, "I don't understand you."

Ken wasn't fazed at Morse's statement, "I can understand, sometimes I don't understand myself even."

Miyu smiled, "And that is the exact reason why I'm grateful to teach this class," she said, to draw the attention back to her after seeing the instant spike of annoyance on Morse's face. "Why have opinions, choices, and wants - needs - but not know how they pertain to ourselves on a more personal subset knowledge? Kira is a perfect example for this exercise."

Miyu walked up to the blackboard, chalk ready in hand as she scribbled two neat words with a large space between them. She cut them apart with a bold line down the middle, "Tell me; can anyone tell me what these words mean?"

' _Empathy_ ' and ' _Sympathy_ ' clashed in white against their black backdrop.

Elizabeth, once Kiyomi Takada, raised her hand. After a nod from Miyu she answered, "Isn't sympathy, pity?"

Miyu paused in contemplation, before reluctantly nodding her head, "Well, yes - crude term, but yes." She turned back to the board to bullet the word ' _pity_ ' underneath ' _Sympathy_ '. "Anyone else?" She asked, looking back out into her sea of students.

"Well, actually," Noble spoke up, "About Kira, like, doesn't he have some authority complex?"

Miyu blinked, paused, before lowering her hand holding the chalk, "What an interesting question, why do you ask?"

"Well, does anyone remember that time, it was a while ago, back in like December or January when some famous guy - don't remember his name - I think he was a detective or something, like challenged Kira? Over the tv? The memory is a little vague now, but Kira was pretty eager to kill that guy, so maybe Kira has something against people who seem superior to them?"

"Oh!" Saki exclaimed anxiously, "I remember that! It was terrifying, that guy died right on screen!"

Noble shrugged, "Yeah, turns out that guy wasn't actually that detective, but he did challenge Kira and then died of a heart attack; it's curious."

Saki bristled, " _Curious_!? That guy _actually died_ and no one was even there! We don't even know _how_ Kira did it - it's horrifying!"

Ken cleared his throat, "Well," he started, pushing his glasses up, "We don't actually know if Kira even did it, to be honest."

"That detective seemed pretty convinced it was Kira," Morse droned in quick response.

"How do we know if Kira actually exists though?" Noble inquired, "I mean, all his victim are criminals, aren't they? And crime has suddenly gone down, but like, all these killings are by heart attacks. What if this is all just some ploy - a hoax - from our justice system to keep crime down?"

There was an instant quiet that overcame the classroom before Ken spoke up softly, "It is pretty easy to induce a heart attack with the right drugs and amount."

"Well, if we assume that Kira is an actual person with the ability to kill without being in person as shown on the tv that time..." Isumi Noriko, now Anna, hesitantly said, "Then how do we prepare for that?"

With confused, bright eyes, Noble turned to her, "Prepare for what?"

"Think about the power he has," she continued, "To kill from a distance, what sort of catastrophe are we waiting for when Kira decides that criminals _aren't enough_?"

Ken swallowed thickly, "But then we have to classify if Kira kills for pleasure or for order."

Anna shook her head, "If you can bring yourself to kill _someone_ , then you are capable of bringing yourself to kill _anyone_. Pleasure, fun, or order - if you can justify doing something most would consider wrong, in any case, then you will continue to put justifications to anything. Think of how distanced Kira is in the first place; he could probably even convince himself that he didn't do anything wrong because he didn't physically himself take away a life."

"We're assuming this is some supernatural power," Ken spoke up, "He is most likely just giving them drugs."

"In that case too though," Anna continued, "Kira isn't actually watching them die. He could be telling himself that he is 'helping them' or making them 'sleep' and then just not watching the real affect. The human mind is a powerful thing - you can do anything really if you can convince your brain to think a certain way."

"Is it really that terrible though?" Morse asked, "Crime is going down and criminals are being taken care of, does it matter how Kira thinks?"

Anna's eyebrows raised, "If Kira can convince himself to kill _someone_ , he can kill _anyone_." She repeated, "Anyone deemed as a 'hinder', or an 'obstacle' will be seen as a threat. Who's to say that Kira will continue killing criminals? Once he starts becoming paranoid, _he'll kill anyone_."

Morse stayed silent, throat working to swallow a lump.

Miyu took a silent deep breath, "Yes, that's a very good thought - a very logical one. It's especially a very great analysis of a person."

The bell rang, but no one moved.

"Have a good day and hopefully tomorrow will be just as productive," Miyu said as she turned to the board and erased the two white words on it with a single arch of her hand. The eraser smudged the white into a cloud of dust against the rest of the stark clean backboard.

Miyu heard the slow and languid sound of her student's disappearing from her classroom - the scrap of a chair and the clack of shoes, but she just continued to busy herself. Kouki had passed out at her desk again, and she passed a gentle hand through his sun-kissed hair while a fond smile pulled at her lips.

Soon the room had fallen quiet again, the signal that her students had left.

"One would wonder why you bring up Kira as a topic for causal discussion," Ryuga's voided tone filled the room. Miyu turned to him who still continued to crouch in his seat, "But as someone bent on the need to cause discomfort while also trying to learn the nature of her student body - I am not too surprised."

A smirk played on her lips, "I wonder why you didn't say anything yourself."

Ryuga blinked, "I was more interested in their thoughts, I'm afraid."

"So, we have something in common then."

"I suppose." Ryuga droned. "Although, watching your reactions to certain keywords were also very interesting, I admit."

"Oh? So _now_ you listen to my advice?"

"What's more reasonable than to test the theory on the very one who presented it?"

She gave a smile, "What did you notice then?"

"You mentioned an older brother, but you said 'was' which implies his is no longer in your life or quite simply not in the world of living anymore. When Noriko- well, _Anna_ , mentioned that once a person has convinced themselves that something normally bad is okay - they can continue with that mindset to devolve into something more corrupted, which in itself is a very logical contemplation."

"However?" Miyu asked.

"However, you seemed to have been a little... lost - in thought. You had experience with this, haven't you?"

She sat down at the desk next to him, expression soft, but eyes dark, "My older brother was a hero, but he had his quirks as well."

Titling his head to the side, obsidian eyes barely pierced her skin as they ran over her body language, "You're good at this game."

She offered him a smirk, "I've been playing it for years, Ryuga - or should I say Ryou?"

Ryuga sighed, "I don't care for what you call me, but I do wish to know why you gave us these... _nicknames,_ " he said almost distastefully.

With a grin, Miyu leaned her chin on the palm of her hand propped up from the desk, "My brother is my hero, but to other's... well, they would say differently. His name is a testament to who he was, not what he did. Other see his actions as a gross defilement to what he was suppose to be, but never understand the reason for his decisions."

"Empathy and Sympathy," he stated and Miyu smiled.

"One must understand their actions in order to understand themselves. Now, of course, Empathy and Sympathy are two different things, but many see them as the same. However, to really understand yourself, these are the two words to start with." She turned green eyes to him, but now they seemed to have a splash of something grey within them. Something colorless and... void.

He blinked once more, "I see."

"Did you notice anything else? Anything that wasn't _me_ , of course?" She asked, eyes flickering to Kouki, which faintly came back with a brighter spark and now Ryuga could maybe see what she meant by 'missing everything even though you notice everything'. More information was needed, however.

"Yes, I'm sure, but it's not so interesting."

Miyu laughed, "Did you just imply that _I_ was interesting?"

Ruyga paused, "That wasn't quite what I meant, but if you want to take it as a compliment, then go ahead."

Miyu rolled her eyes and stood up from the desk. "You're no fun, but I guess it's not _too surprising_."

After a short sigh, Ryuga unfolded himself from his own desk as well, anticipating Miyu's coming dismissal.

"I want you to think about something tonight, Ryuga," Miyu said, moving to her son who softly snored against the wood of her desk. "I want you to think about Empathy and Sympathy. What are they to you and how do you live them? You can be as honest as you want, but just as yourself if you think you have empathy or sympathy. Maybe both." She turned to him with a thin smile, "Tomorrow will be a fun day."

He gave a shot nod and she gave a short farewell wave before he turned and left - hand in his pockets and shoulders slumped forward.

Empathy and Sympathy wasn't normally a think he contemplated in the middle of his night, but he supposes that he normally didn't do anything except work.

A lot of changes were happening lately and he couldn't figure out if they were good or bad just yet.

* * *

 **April 7, 2004**

' _Empathy_ ' and ' _Sympathy_ ' were proudly etched on the board again the next day.

Miyu paid her students no mind while they filtered in as she busied herself with some handouts and getting Kouki situated comfortably with some scrap paper and colored pencils.

He grinned widely at her and she smiled back, hand running through his soft blond hair. Kouki was just too precious sometimes, but at the same time, Miyu couldn't bring herself to think it was enough for her.

She took a breath and then focused on her class, "Well," she grinned, "Yesterday was a great discussion day - gave me some information on who will really be vocally active with the classroom, but hopefully things will change as we go through the year. Today is just a small activity, it should take all class, but if you need more time; I'll be happy to lend it." She glanced to Kouki who eagerly dropped his blue colored pencil to jump to his feet. He happily passed out the handouts Miyu had on her desk with a smile.

Miyu watched him with a grin of her own for a moment before turning back to the class, "Just answer the questions - as honestly as possible - and try to detail your thoughts. This is a learning experience, not only for me, but for yourselves as well. Writing has always been a more helpful tool to figuring out your thoughts. We've tested vocal, now we're moving to writing. This will help me understand you and cater to your more basic needs and skills for the duration of this class. The more I understand you, the better we work together."

Saki raised her hand, and Miyu motioned for her to continue, "We didn't talk about your name yesterday?"

Miyu smiled, "Do you guys really want to give me a name?"

Noble grinned, "Of course. Some of us here got stuck with some annoying English names and we aren't even in English class. You should get yourself an annoying name too."

After a short laugh, Miyu turned to the black board with white chalk in hand, "I'm guessing you have some suggestions?"

Noble gave a light scoff, "Luka, Ava, Mia, Isabella..." Miyu jotted them on the board.

"Ember, or Emerson," Ken jumped in.

"Oh, how about Aviana!" Saki exclaimed in excitement.

"Ellen," Anna added softly.

Miyu stopped to stare at the list of names. She laughed, "Well, I can see the aggression. Most of these are English."

"Did some research," Noble supplied with a toothy grin and some resounding agreements around him.

"El," Rin, once known as Akito Sakura suddenly spoke up. His voice was soft and a slight tremble was undertoned, but Miyu was sure she was the only one who really heard that part. She smiled wide at him as he stubbornly kept his eyes on his desk, "Spelled, E-l-l-e." There was a loud murmur of respect for the new name presented.

Miyu quickly wrote the name on the board before putting the chalk down. She wiped her hands of the chalk dust as she turned back to her desk. "Thank you, Rin. I do like short names, but I hope you guys have a wide enough selection to your liking. Get out a piece of paper, write a name on it and we'll see majority."

There was an obvious air of confidence that shifted the air of the classroom, Miyu watching her students send cheeky knowing looks to one another before jotting a name. Miyu grinned to herself, leaning back against her desk while she waited. She turned to Kouki who seemed to be eagerly waiting too, a ripped piece of paper in his own hand. Standing by her desk, he anticipated for when he could collect the papers.

Miyu pulled him to her side, ruffling his hair. "Aren't you cute," she murmured to him as he quietly giggled. He handed her his paper with a grin, "What's this?"

The letter ' _L_ ', was messily scrawled on the paper. She paused before realizing he only heard the name Elle, but didn't hear Rin spelling it out the correct way.

"Well, the others look about done too, why don't you grab them, love?"

Kouki nodded, determinedly moving to collect all the papers. A pile filled his arms as Miyu took them one by one and put a tally mark next to the name she came across on the backboard. So far, ' _Elle_ ' was winning with five and the others losing by zero. Miyu paused when the next name was ' _Elle_ ' again. She placed down the chalk and started turning up the pile of papers Kouki had in his arms. A wide smile was on his face even though his eyes were glittering confusion.

Miyu laughed, "Well, Elle wins, it looks like. How ironic," she murmurs as she turns to her students, letting Kouki do as he wished with the paper scraps. One fluttered to the floor and she picked it up for him. "So, I'll now be called Elle, so nice to meet you all. This was definitely an experience, that's for sure. Now, you all can have the rest of class to catch up on your assignments. Towards the end of the period, we'll gauge if it'll be homework or easily worked into tomorrow's class."

Her eyes glanced to the name on the paper, but took a double take when she realized it wasn't the name she was expecting.

She looked up to met Ryuga's dark eyes. They peered back, wide and void, a flash of amusement disappearing as soon as she spotted it.

' _Alice_ '.

* * *

 **I had this as the second chapter in the original story, but I ended up splitting the chapter up.**

 **I did write a big chunk of this about a month earlier, but then my laptop restarted out of the blue and everything I had written didn't save. I lost a bit of my motivation after that - but luckily I remembered most of it to rewrite when I came back.**

 **Hope you enjoyed,**  
 **~Sakura**


End file.
